Britney’s “Glee” Episode Is Happening, People

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After doing themed episodes for Madonna and Lady Gaga, and with a Coldplay episode in the offing, it was only a matter of time before “Glee” creator Ryan Murphy figured out a way to do a Britney Spears episode of the TV musical smash. Murphy told Entertainment Tonight that a Spears episode is being prepared as we speak.

While there's no word if the pop princess herself will appear on the hit show, "Glee" creator/writer Ryan Murphy tells ET that the show is currently in the middle of writing a Spears episode.

The hit show, earning 19 Emmy noms Thursday, will also air a big tribute episode after next year's Super Bowl, but Murphy didn't reveal which star it will be based on, only hinting that we were "close" by guessing Michael Jackson.

Well then, if Michael Jackson is only a close guess, then Jermaine Jackson must be the right answer. Can’t wait to see Lea Michele do a killer version of “Escape From the Planet of the Ant Men” (yes, that’s the actual title of a Jermaine Jackson song).

Anyway, few performers on Earth could benefit from a “Glee” tribute right now than Britney Spears. She’s already been consigned to musical irrelevancy by Gaga and Ke$ha, and that’s unlikely to change any time soon. Spears also remains under the conservatorship of her father, and has yet to recover from the very public breakdown she had just a few years ago. It’s hard to remember that Spears was once a musical artist (as much as anything she made could be called music), so a return to focusing on her songs is probably the right tonic for her career at this point. And man, I never thought I’d see the day when it behooved Britney Spears to have people pay attention to her MUSIC.

I fully expect the “Glee” cast to recreate the “Baby One More Time” video with hot girls in schoolgirl outfits (I have no issue with this), along with new arrangements of “Oops! I Did It Again” and maybe that “Crazy” song I saw in an ad for a Melissa Joan Hart movie once. Will it be enough to give Spears’ career and life a much-needed spark? I wouldn’t underestimate anything this show can do right now.

Published at 9:20 AM PDT on Jul 9, 2010 | Updated at 11:46 AM PDT on May 30, 2012